Library access research

Three multivariate analyses, all controlling for the effects of poverty, confirm the importance of the library. Replicating McQuillan’s analysis of 1992 NAEP scores, access to books in school and public libraries was a significant predictor of 2007 fourth grade NAEP reading scores, as well as the difference between grade 4 and grade 8 2007 NAEP reading scores, suggesting that access is important for improvement after grade 4. Access (school/classroom libraries) was a significant predictor of scores on the PIRLS test, a reading test given to fourth graders in 40 countries.

In some of the analyses, access to books had a larger impact on reading achievement test scores than poverty, and in other cases had nearly as strong an impact. This suggests that providing more access to books can mitigate the effect of poverty on reading achievement, a conclusion consistent with other recent results. This result is of enormous practical importance: Children of poverty typically have little access to books. It seems that libraries can provide this access.

Stephen Krashen, Syying Lee, and Jeff McQuillan . (2012). Is The Library Important? Multivariate Studies at the National and International Level. http://backseatlinguist.com/blog/

Virtual educationperfomance report

How are students at privately run virtual schools performing? There were 43% more students learning online at virtual schools managed by private companies in 2011 than in 2010. However, a report being published today says such schools have not outperformed traditional public schools and charter schools on standardized tests. The report found that 27% of privately managed virtual schools achieved Adequate Yearly Progress, compared with about 52% of traditional schools.
National Education Policy Center. (2012). Profiles of For-Profit and Nonprofit Education Management Organizations: Thirteenth Annual Report - 2010-2011.
http://nepc.colorado.edu/publication/EMO-profiles-10-11

Technology in K12 report

This report is part of Alliance for Excellent Education's initiative aimed at getting states to pass policies more friendly to digital learning. The report notes the latest developments in the ed-tech arena while acknowledging that challenges raised in the original report still affect today's teachers and learners. The report breaks those challenges into three categories: workplace readiness, budget shortfalls, and access to high-quality education. Technology can help address these gaps and challenges, the report says, through real-time data and assessment feedback, a variety of online and digital content, and increased communication with teachers, parents, and students, teachers.
Alliance for Excellent Education. (2012). The Digital Learning Imperative: How Technology and Teaching Meet Today's Educational Challenges. http://www.all4ed.org/files/DigitalLearningImperative.pdf

Twitter and student achievement study

This research found that college students and teachers who used twitter in their course were more engaged in learning and earned higher grades than parallel students without the Twitter inclusion.
R. Junco, G. Heiberger, E. Loken (2011) The effect of Twitter on college student engagement and grades, Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, 27(2),119-132.
http://www.biojobblog.com/uploads/file/twitter%20as%20an%20educational%20tool.pdf

Public school distance education report

A majority of public school districts in the United States have students who participate in distance education courses at some level, according to data released by the National Center for Education Statistics. But the most of those districts aren't delivering the education themselves.
National Center for Education Statistics. (2011). Distance Education Courses for Public Elementary and Secondary School Students: 2009–10. Washington, DC: Author.
http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2012008

Gender and equity report

This international report asserts that closing persistent gender gaps matters because gender equality is a core development objective and is smart economics. Greater gender equality can enhance productivity, improve development outcomes for the next generation, and make institutions more representative. Building on a growing body of knowledge on the economics of gender equality and development, the Report identifies the areas where gender gaps are most significant—both intrinsically and in terms of their potential development payoff—and where growth alone cannot solve the issues. It then sets forth four priorities for public action:
Reducing excess female mortality and closing education gaps where they remain
Improving access to economic opportunities for women
Increasing women’s voice and agency in the household and in society
Limiting the reproduction of gender inequality across generations.
World Bank. (2011). World development report 2012: Gender equity and development.
http://publications.worldbank.org/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=0&products_id=24225&wbid=8827593a40b26776d0add31033655772

Perceptions of children's use of digital media study

A recent student found that more parents are concerned about the effect of digital media on children's learning and development. However, many parents also say they do not think their children are spending too much time with computers and other devices. Parents should play video games and watch television with their children, to better understand the time they spend on these activities and to make the experience more enriching, experts say.
Takeuchi, L. (2011). Families matter: Designing media for a digital age. New York, NY: Joan Ganz Cooney Center at Sesame Workshop.
http://www.joanganzcooneycenter.org/upload_kits/jgcc_familiesmatter.pdf